Fairy Tale
by Zezima Veliz
Summary: Yanked out of his own world, Jonathan finds himself thrown into a land completely unlike the previous. Whilst dealing with the already problematic process of puberty, Jonathan finds himself making new friends and of course, new enemies. However, not everything is as it seems in this strange, new land...
1. Chapter 1

_**I came up with this idea a year or two back while editing **__**Friendship is Beautiful**_**, **_**recently decided I should try to continue it. Let's see how it goes.**_

_St. Joseph, Michigan_

_November 12__th__, 1999_

Lungs burning with every rapid breath, Jonathan hesitantly glanced over his shoulder, checking to see if his chasers were still in pursuit and upon spotting them trailing closely, guessed the distance between the two thugs and him was only a feeble 5 yards. Frantically searching for an idea, he realized that the only method of escape was to buy himself some time.

And what better way to do that, than with a diversion?

Luckily enough for him, an overflowing trash bin was placed a few yards ahead of him. Just as he passed, Jonathan kicked his heel in to the rusted, metal cylinder causing it to topple over, spewing it's contents all over the concrete. Almost anticipating the sound, Jonathan couldn't help but feel a large amount of shame in the commotion caused just a few yards behind him. _Not the best idea to get distracted right now, _Jonathan reminded himself, forcing the guilt out of his mind. _You can dwell on that later._ Turning down another dismal corner, he continued trekking deeper into the long-abandoned alley. Being 1st string on the football team of his middle school, Jonathan was used to long periods of exercise, yet in spite of this he felt his will to keep running fade little by little with each aching step. Cargo shorts sticking to his sweat slicked legs, Jonathan restlessly gazed ahead of him for any means of escape. _Come on, come on! A door or something would be extremely useful..._

And a door there was, a broken screen covering it from the elements. Grinding his teeth, Jonathan pushed himself to run faster, breaking into a full-tilt sprint. As he approached the door, Jonathan felt his spirits lifting and a small grin formed upon his lips. Skidding to a complete halt within arm's reach of the door, Jonathan doubled over, hands on his knees. Desperately gasping for the bitter-sweet air, his lungs seemed impossible to satisfy at first, but gradually the burning sensation dissipated. After a few seconds of rest, Jonathan thrust his hand toward the handle of the screen, yanking it open carelessly and letting it slam against the faded brick wall. The cool brass in his fingers, Jonathan turned the knob, lowered his shoulder and drove it forward in one motion.

Not at all budging, the door stood its ground and Jonathan crashed full-tilt into its solid steel. A quiet 'yelp' escaping his lips, the boy reeled backward from the door and instinctively reached for his now throbbing shoulder. For a few seconds Jonathan rubbed the aching muscle, mumbling angrily under his breath. He turned away from the door, letting the screen hang lazily open against the wall, and started jogging at a swift pace.

_God, you're such an idiot Jonathan. Why on Earth would a random door out in the middle of nowhere be unlocked just out of convenience? Of course the door would be locked._ What other possibility could there have ever been, he asked himself. That perhaps, for once in his life the gods (or God) would smile down upon and grant him just one smallbitof good fortune? _Doubtful. _Even with having no concrete religious beliefs to speak of, the boy sometimes just couldn't help but imagine that the only deity that existed was a hateful one, hidden away in the heavens. Granting terrible luck to the boy at every given opportunity, a wicked smile would stretch wider and wider across its face, every small act of mischievousness filling the being's heart with glee. As if confirming this theory of his, a booming voice could be heard reverberating off of the walls from behind, the sudden noise shaking him from his anger.

"Guess who's back, you little snitch!"

Blood running cold, Jonathan felt a shiver run down his spine at the sound. Adding to the horror, he quickly whirled around another corner and found himself face to face with a red-brick wall. _Dead-end, _an all too familiar voice solemnly stated from within some part of his mind, bringing with it an almost suffocating sense of self-doubt. Subconsciously backing himself against the wall, he slumped lazily to the ground and buried his face into his hands soaked with perspiration. A shaky, surrendering breath escaped his lips, and he languidly glanced upwards once more at the sky for any signs of mercy. His eyes shot open in shock. In utter disbelief, he briefly considered pinching himself to make sure he wasn't dreaming. There, two to three yards off of the ground—perfect jumping height for the 5'8" boy—was a ladder. Presumably used for maintenance of the murky, cheerless building, the ladder led about fifteen stories up to the rooftop.

In a last-ditch effort he once again rose to his feet. Knees bending as far as they would go, Jonathan sprung off of the ground and toward the ladder, desperately reaching for something to grab. Cold steel brushed against his palm and he quickly wrapped his fingers around the rung. The metal groaned and creaked, straining with his weigh, but held strong. Wiping the sweat off of his opposite hand, Jonathan hesitantly reached up and gripped the next step. Meanwhile, several footsteps could be heard from below and the two men appeared around the corner. The shorter of the two, one of the thugs pointed a threatening finger up at Jonathan's climbing form.

"There's the bastard!" The man hissed, a twisted smile curling his lips. "We can get him, Manny, come on!"

The man took an aggressive step forward, but Manny put a long arm in front of him, halting the man. "Tony, leave him for now. We'll get the boy soon enough," he said in a calm demeanor, his soulless brown eyes inspecting the teen who was now a quarter of the way up the ladder. "But-"

Manny put a hand up to silence him. Nodding his head toward at the alley, he silently turned on his heel, striding back around the corner and Tony, taking one last glance at Jonathan, begrudgingly followed him.

Eventually, the boy pulled himself over on top of the building and collapsed onto the floor. Arms aching, he rolled over on to his sweat soaked back and stared in the grim, gray clouds. Once again, the mocking voice echoed inside of his mind, _You've escaped them for now, but what next? Unless you have another plan, all you've managed to do is effectively trap yourself. You need to think of something, Jonathan. _

_ And I will, _Jonathan replied mentally, a grimace etched into his features. He struggled to prop himself up on his elbows, but almost immediately fell back to the floor. _After I rest for a second, of course._

After a minutes of rest Jonathan rose gradually to his feet, casually brushing some dust off of his shorts. "What's next?" he pondered quietly to himself, treading over to the edge. On another day, Jonathan would've been glad to just silently stand and take in the sights of the beautiful city, but today he had a different idea in mind. And after scanning the cityscape for a moment, the teen's thoughts returned back to the ladder. _Maybe I could sneak back down and quietly make my way back into the streets?_ He briefly considered the idea, and seconds later came up with several situations in which the plan could fail, and just one in which it succeeded. Not liking the odds of it, Jonathan gave up the thought and followed along the outer edge of the roof, fingers softly scratching the back of his neck.

A different view of the cityscape gave him another set of options, one of which, Jonathan realized—was painfully obvious. 'Painfully'being the keyword, not too far away from his current position was a hotel building. On instinct, Jonathan glanced around the roof, looking for any planks of wood or sturdy scraps of metal. There were none. It was as if somebody had come before him and taken any materials of worth, leaving behind only soggy patches of cardboard and crumbled bricks.

"Guess I'll have to wing it, then" Jonathan mumbled to nobody in particular, his heart already beginning to thump against his ribs. Looking down at the ground below, he could almost feel it beckoning to him, _wanting_ him to fall. Jonathan began taking steps backward, his sneakers silent against the rough cement. He didn't fear heights, that was sure. Though the thought of splattering all over the streets wasn't exactly pleasant to him, either. After fifteen steps, Jonathan settled down into a position similar to a 'three-point stance' in Football. With only one chance at this, the teen knew he couldn't hold anything back. He summoned all of his remaining energy, and launched himself toward the edge. Speed building as he drew nearer, Jonathan sprinted, arms swinging wildly at his sides. This was it, he couldn't change his mind now. Now all he could do was leap and hope for the best.

And he did.

Time seemed to slow down. Jonathan felt like the world had abruptly stopped spinning, the winds around him ceasing to blow. Below him, the cars were plodding forward, moving slower than the average human's walking speed. Any passerby-ers stood, almost frozen in time. For a moment, Jonathan could feel his heart's beating reduced to a single every few seconds, and then it sped back up again. His feet met with the solid surface of the hotel, and leaning forward to maintain balance, he kept his feet moving before braking from the forward momentum.

Jonathan doubled over, gasping for air. _That could have very well just ended my life,_ he mused. A slight grin formed on the teen's face, and he couldn't help but silently chuckle at the realization. "I might just make it back tonight."

He turned his attention to the door nearby, light gleaming off of the shiny, jet black metal. The door opened easily on it's hinges, and didn't make a sound as he closed it lightly behind him. Inside, the long corridor was well-lit but cramped, and with almost no elbow room he walked with his arms glued firmly to his sides. Meanwhile, between the tight walls claustrophobia began to set in, making his personal victory a little less sweet.

"...this isn't where I meant to teleport us, John..."

Jonathan paused. Curiosity struck him and he turned to what the gold plate attached to it stated clearly in black, printed lettering; _Room 67. _He cautiously and silently put his ear against the cool wood, listening in for any other signs of conversation.

"You're fine, Celly. Just remember to keep your focus next time, eh?" a male eventually replied in a baritone voice, his tone sounding amused. A light sigh could be heard in response, which sounded like it belonged to a female.

"I know, I know..."

Retreating his ear from the door, Jonathan chuckled lightly to himself and continued on his way toward the end of the hall. _Must have just been the television...though the show did sound pretty interesting, honestly._ After a few minutes of silently walking through the hall, he reached the metal door of an elevator. To the left of the elevator was a panel with only one button; an arrow pointing down—which he automatically pressed. _I'll have to find that program on my TV when I get back to the fosters._

Above the entrance, a series of bulbs could be seen, each one labeled in order from left to right—numbers one through sixteen. The first orb to the left was lit, earning a small groan from Jonathan who impatiently crossed his arms with a huff, his left foot tapping against the ground to some nonexistent rhythm. After about one-hundred and seventeen taps, the two metal panels slid out away from each other and a triad of business men stepped out. They wore seamless Armani suits, tailored fit to a T. Squishing himself against the wall, Jonathan sidled past the group with a hushed 'excuse me' and entered the elevator. He activated the button signifying the lobby, and watched as the two plated slabs glided shut. Taking advantage of the long waiting period, Jonathan silently began plotting his next courses of action.

_After I make it to the ground floor, I can book it out of here and immediately make my way toward Williams Street, though where do I go after I get there? Maybe I could make a quick pit stop at the gas station..._

Before the door was even fully open, he stepped sideways into the small, quaint lobby. At a desk nearby, a female receptionist peered at him over the top of a magazine, "Oh—my apologies sir, is your room service button out of order?"

Jonathan quickly came up with a lie and replied, "Not at all, Ma'am. Just gonna go for a walk on the beach while my parents sleep."

"Do you have your card for re-entry?"

Stopping before the exit, Jonathan turned toward the woman and gave a lopsided grin. "Of course! Carrying it in one of my front pockets," to complete this lie, he softly patted both of his pockets.

The lady returned the smile before turning her attention back to her copy of _Cosmopolitan._ Once she could no longer see his face, Jonathan let out a quiet sigh of relief. _Glad she believed me. Though I doubt I could have gotten into too much trouble, it's not really worth it to risk it._

Reaching for the doorknob, he had barely turned it when the door flung open and knocked him off balance. Staggered, Jonathan had no time to react when a man burst into the lobby and thrust a sharp right hook in his jaw. The initial hit hadn't hurt too much, but his head jerked abruptly to the side and he lost consciousness. As the teen's limp body slumped to the floor, the lady behind the desk began screaming in terror and reached for the nearest phone. Meanwhile, the attacker paid no attention to the witness, walking triumphantly toward Jonathan's unmoving form.

Tony stood victorious over him, a wide grin stretching across his scarred face. "I knew we'd still get ya', rotten punk."

It was hours before Jonathan found himself drifting gradually back into consciousness. Or had it been mere minutes—he couldn't be sure, time seemed to drag on forever in the eerie darkness. In his current state of lethargy, even the most routine activities, such as opening his eyes, felt impossible to accomplish. After a few minutes, he mustered up enough energy to force his eyes open. From what he could tell, he was being carried like a child over somebody's shoulder. He couldn't decide where in St. Joe he was at, though as his eyes adjusted to the light he could begin to make out that it was the taller thug, Manny, holding him. Below them, wooden paneling creaked with every step.

_ "_Ugh—I've always hated this pier, man. Always feels like it could collapse at any moment," a groan came from somewhere to Jonathan's left.

Manny snorted and glanced at his companion, "Cheer up. We've just gotta dispose of this nuisance, and then we're outta here. Boss says he wants us to head back to the warehouse for our reward." He adjusted the teen over his shoulder a bit, before letting a heavy sigh slip through his lips. "Now I don't know about you, but after running around St. Joe for the past hour or two, a reward sounds pretty damn nice about now."

"Damn straight."

They soon reached the end of the pier, and Manny brought Jonathan off of his shoulder and held the teen in his giant-like hands. Jonathan tried his best to peer into the man's eyes, and for a second he could've sworn he saw a look that kind of seemed...remorseful? Whatever the look had been, it was quickly replaced by their normal soulless look. He lifted Jonathan up above his head, and with relative ease tossed him into the chilly water. Jonathan's vision was quickly filled with hues of blue and green as the water rushed above his head. As much as he wanted to struggle, his body still hadn't fully awoken from the forced slumber and wouldn't respond fast enough. The cold water stung his skin and with every breath he tried to take, his lungs were quickly filled with the icy liquid. Along with the blue and green, a white hue began filling his vision as it became hazy.

_ This is it, _Jonathan thought._ I'm barely thirteen years old, and I'm already at my life's end. _

_**Author's Note: Hello, all! Look who's finally got a new story, you guessed it—me! First and foremost, I'm sorry for the severe lack of Pony in this first chapter, I promise the next one will have PLENTY of that. And don't worry, I'll go back to **_**A Soldier's Honor **_**at some point in the future, I promise. I'm currently taking a break from it, as I am rather unsure of where I want the plot to go at its current point, and I'm hoping I can figure something out by working on this story.**_

_**I hope you all enjoy this, and if you do; feel free to review! Any constructive criticism is welcome.**_

_**I love you all,**_

_**~Zezima**_


	2. Races to Picnics

_** deltafrost – Congratulations on first review! I'm hoping this next chapter answers your question.**_

_November 13__th_

With a sputtering cough, Jonathan returned to the world of the living and regained consciousness. He awoke staring up into the refulgent sky, set ablaze by the sun rising over the water in the east. The reflection of the golden glowing orb shimmered off of the water, which, when mixed with the sight of the lush, green forest surrounding him on all sides but one, created a stunning scene. It was breathtaking to say the least, the likes of which he had never before seen in St. Joseph. This fact drove the teen to believe he was somehow in a different location, and a lack of any recognizable landmarks confirmed this. Sand shifted beneath him as Jonathan propped himself up on an elbow to get a better view.

A very sudden _squawk _ripped Jonathan from his stuper – a seagull had somehow landed right next to the teen without him noticing. Startled, Jonathan made a silent shooing-motion at the bird, which caused it to take off and glide away to another section of the shoreline. He was still slightly embarrassed at the thought of being scared by such a small creature, but shook it off as he slowly got to his feet. _That proves I'm still alive, I suppose. _

It was a very weird sensation, being able to breath again. Lungs that were before filled to the brim with water were now fully functional. A heart that he was sure had stopped beating, thumped as lively as ever against his chest.

"I have to admit though, it's a very beautiful place," he mumbled quietly to himself. He ran his hand through his close-shaven blonde hair a few times, attempting to remove any stray grits of sand. Promptly, he repeated the same process to his still-moist cargo shorts and shirt, but it was a fruitless effort, as the wet fabric consistently held the sand in place. After a few minutes of trying his outfit showed no improvement visually, and the teen gave up. _With the sun rising, my clothes have to dry off eventually_, he told himself.

Deciding he should leave the beach, he then turned toward the vast woods and began to scan the treeline for any openings. Almost straight ahead of him, a small gap in the trees caught his attention and with a closer look Jonathan noticed a dirt path trailing off into the forest.

The teen groggily vaulted over a small, grassy bluff, then ducked under an overlying branch into the trees. "Can't see more than ten feet in front of my own eyes..." Jonathan noted, squinting into the dense cluster of brown and red and orange. Using an arm to shift branches to the side, he then stepped out of their path and lowered his head as they snapped back into place. After a half hour of aimlessly traversing the footpath, the barren earth faded into a roughly cut stone. Used tantamount to some retro roadways, the stone was carved into four by four bricks in a fashion that suggested it was done by hand, rather than with a machine. _Not too out of the ordinary, _Jonathan thought, _Seen a few of these in St. Joe. _It was at this point that he noticed the lack of branches reaching out in front of him, and with no obstructions to his vision he saw a small clearing in the trees. Following the route eventually brought Jonathan to a sturdy looking bridge that arched over and across a fast moving stream. As the teen stood atop the curved structure he gazed down at the transparent water, riddled with pebbles of various sizes and colors.

It was a new experience to Jonathan, seeing this much of nature. He was much more accustomed to the city life, compelling him to sit and just take in the beautiful scenery. Who knew when he'd ever have another chance to do this once he got back home? _If I ever do get home..._, Jonathan realized, though his expression remained unchanged. Truth be told, he wasn't sure if really _wanted _to go back. _Because it'd be so wonderful, going to back to the damned Fosters, _a sarcastic voice said from somewhere in the inner folds of his mind. The good part of his consciousness quickly retorted, _They could be worried about me._

_ Worried?! That shiner that you've just recently recovered from is DEFINITELY a sign of their worry. _

Fervently shaking bad memories from his head, Jonathan decided that dwelling on them would eventually drive him insane, and stepped off of the stone bridge following the tiled pathway towards a gradual, low hill. With each step, exposed calves and ankles were tickled by the wild arm's length grass.

What Jonathan saw at the peak stole the breath from his lungs.

**(Perspective Shift)**

"Come on Tia! Come on get up!" a voice called to her from outside of her slumber. Only making a groan in response, Princess Celestia made no effort to leave the warm, cozy haven that was her bed. She had accidentally stayed awake for a large portion of the night thanks to her new book, _Levitation, Teleportation, and Other Useful Spells. _The consequences of which had taken its toll on the the young unicorn. Invading her haven, a vivid beam of light penetrated the safe and welcoming darkness as part of the heavy blanket was lifted up and off of the mattress. Begrudgingly, Celestia opened a slightly bloodshot eye by just a fraction and found two deep, azure orbs staring back at her, which seemed to radiate pure cheerfulness. As frustrated as she was at being woken up so early, the smallest smile began creeping its way onto her face at the sight. The younger filly seemed to be slightly bouncing in place, trying to contain her excitement.

"The Pegasi are bringing the final rain of the year tomorrow," Luna said impatiently, "We gotta make this day count!" Celestia was springing out of the bed before her sibling had even finished talking.

"Oh my stars...how could I have forgotten?" she asked herself as she tried to shake the grogginess from her system. Her horn shimmered a bright yellow, and a hairbrush enveloped in the same golden aura levitated towards her. _It happens the same day every year, _Celestia thought, running the brush hurriedly through her tangled, fuchsia strands of hair. _I should have easily memorized the date by now. _Despite the short amount of rest she had actually gotten, the process of straightening her mane took a few minutes longer than expected. Several times, she had almost yanked half of her mane out just to remove the tangled brush from a particularly determined knot, which had earned a few laughs from her younger sister.

After removing the last knot, the snow white princess set the brush back down onto her nightstand and upon checking herself once over in the mirror, turned and started walking toward the already open door. An idea suddenly made it's way into her mind, causing a sly grin to form on the filly's face. She paused and glanced back over her shoulder at Luna, "Would thou care for a little race, Sister?" she asked with a teasing smile.

Something seemed to click within Luna's mind as Celestia said this. Before she could even react, Luna was bolting past her and into the hallway, shouting something along the lines of "You-bet-your-flank-I-want-a-race!" The elder filly took off after her, laughing uncontrollably all the while. Luna easily kept the lead, actually gaining some distance from Celestia as they raced through the twisting and turning corridors of the palace they called home. Truth be told, the alabaster unicorn hadn't really been expecting to win this race, nor did she expect to even keep up. Just as much as racing was a routine competition for the two sisters, Celestia losing the races was a routine in itself. That's not to say she was incompetent, or even that she was unathletic, however. Compared to most ponies Celestia was actually quite physically adept, and she was able to clear an orchard (1.7 miles rounded up, though the real number is around 1.674 miles) in four minutes.

The thing was, Luna was even _more _fit physically, which really said something. When compared to her older sister, Celestia; Luna could clear in orchard in a little over three and half minutes on hoof - under three minutes in the air.

By the time Celestia reached the ground floor of the palace, Luna was already climbing up onto her chair and readily preparing herself for breakfast. Approaching the long, wooden dining table, Celestia sat herself in the seat next to Luna. On the ivory unicorn's plate was her personal favorites - two slices of buttered toast and a warm, blue berry muffin. The younger filly's plate was filled completely with a tall stack of pancakes, which were drowned in a heavy coat of maple syrup, and a large portion of scrambled eggs with diced ham cubes mixed in.

While munching down onto her first piece of the scrumptious toast, several ideas of how to spend the day raced through Celestia's head. She sat silent to contemplate the options, when Luna chimed in with her own idea.

"Why don't we *munch* go swimming in the lake?" she suggested, her mouth partially full of food.

The older unicorn cringed ever-so-slightly at the filly's ill-mannered habit and shook her head, "While it may not be too chilly today, the water will still be frigid unfortunately." Luna looked slightly disappointed, but quickly brought up another idea. "How about a picnic then, Tia?"

A wide, toothy smile stretched it's way across Celestia's face, her velvet eyes glowing with a new found excitement at the suggestion, "Oh Sister, that sounds wonderful!"

The two sisters spent the rest of their breakfast discussing ideas for meals they could bring with them on the outing, and eventually they agreed on a collation consisting of four ham sandwiches, some apples, and for a little dessert they also included a couple of muffins. After preparing the meal with a speed surprising for her age, Celestia slowed her pace to be sure to place the items in a manner that the sandwiches would into a sturdy looking basket, which had been crafted for the Princesses by an expert basket-weaver.

Outside on the palace grounds, Luna was impatiently pacing. She had been doing so for several minutes; evident by the circle-like trail of flattened grass left in her wake. When she finally heard the heavy 'thud' of the castle door closing behind Celestia, she let out a frustrated groan and stopped her pacing. "What took you so long, Tia, you get lost in the kitchen or something?"

Celestia arched a brow, "You've been out here for five minutes."

"Still!"

Sun was high in the sky, the day was young and fresh. Rays of sunshine blanketed the land in a warm coat of light. The wind brought with it a cool, gentle breeze, washing across the vast open fields surrounding the castle and flowing through the two sisters' fur, the crisp smell of water was washed in from the distant lake. Ahead of them, the forest swayed lightly side to side in the wind. Leaves - red, orange, yellow, brown - tired of their constant struggle to live, begrudgingly released their grip on the bark and fell with a regretful silence to the earth. Celestia said nothing as she walked at her younger sister's side, taking in the scenery. It was all very beautiful. It was nearing the end of autumn; her favorite season. Whether it was the vivid shift of colors or the cool air that got through to her...Celestia did not know. A content smile remained on her face as they made their way across the grounds, her violet eyes absorbing every little detail. At her side, Luna held the small picnic basket between her teeth. She seemed to not mind the small task, a delighted smile curling the ends of her lips upward. To be honest, Luna was happy just to leave their home, it did not matter to her how far she had to walk. She - like her sister - loved the outdoors.

As the duo approached the luxuriant forest, a shadowy figure loomed over the horizon, causing the two to stop in their tracks. The figure, it's features hidden by the shade caused by the overlying branches, mirrored the action and stopped.

_**Author's Note: Hello all! Life's been kinda hectic lately so this chapter took longer than I expected to come out, but I still hope y'all will enjoy it nonetheless. Any constructive criticism is welcome – hell, even wanted. How else am I gonna get better at entertaining you guys?**_

_**I love you all, **_

_**~Zezima**_


	3. Chapter 3

_Royal Palace Grounds, Equestria_

_November 13__th_

"Hello?"

It was a simple word, yet blew Jonathan away when it escaped the lips of the alabaster unicorn, whose voice sounded female. Unconsciously, Jonathan took a small step backward and frantically rubbed his eyes. Not only were there _two_ mythical creatures standing in front of him—a unicorn and pegasus—but one of them had spoken to him. In English. Noticing his reaction, the unicorn edge forward slightly and asked another simple question, making sure to keep her voice quiet. "Can you understand me?"

As if automatically, Jonathan blurted out a quiet "Yes" in response. He mirrored the unicorn's action, and took a couple tentative steps forward out of the shadows, then paused. Brisk sunlight enveloped him, its warmness helping sooth his nerves. He knew he should continue—say something at least. His breathing was still shaky, but he did his best to steady it before continuing.

"Yes—I can understand you, but er..._who_ are you?"

The two creatures looked to each other for a second, then back at him. They seemed puzzled by his appearance, but not in the least frightened by it. A silent agreement seemed to have been made between the two, though, as the white unicorn nodded at the younger and smaller pegasus, then smiled at Jonathan. "Allow me to introduce myself, then. My name is Celestia, and this is my younger sister-"

"I'm Luna!" the pegasus cried, the picnic basket dropping to the soft earth below. Celestia couldn't help but giggle into her hoof at the younger filly's outburst, "Yes—this is Luna." Within his chest, Jonathan felt his heart rate slowly returning to its normal state. The two did not seem at all hostile—in fact, they actually seemed pretty friendly to him. This situation was certainly different from what all the stereotypical "alien" movies had made it out to be. There were no abductions, the oh-so-common 'take me to your leader' was not even once uttered...though to be fair, the roles were quite reversed at the moment.

Jonathan's gaze shifted unintentionally past the two fillies and his jaw dropped. A vast landscape with rolling hills stretched as far as the eye could see, thickets of willow trees scattered here and there. Up atop an aerie, a castle of gray-stone and marble stood, connected to two towers with pointed roofs that pierced the clouds. Having never left St. Joseph in his life, it was an absolutely breathtaking sight to Jonathan; a true architectural masterpiece to behold.

Jonathan realized then that he was drifting off, and looked back to Celestia and Luna. "Well, I guess it'd be rude not to introduce myself, then," he said, tugging lightly at his shirt collar. "I...I'm Jonathan."

"Well, it's nice to meet you Jonathan," Celestia said, walking over to him. "My sister and I were just about to have a picnic. Would you care to partake?"

Jonathan slowly shook his head in response, "I'd hate to be a bother."

Celestia laughed lightly, "Nonsense. You wouldn't be a bother in the slightest, Jonathan. Haven't you ever heard the phrase 'the more the merrier'?"

"Come on, it'll be fun!" Luna added, a toothy smile on her face.

Jonathan let out a slight breath. _Are you seriously even considering this? RUN, you idiot! _a voice told him from the dark of his mind. _They're just trying to be nice, the least I could do is be kind in response. "_Alright, alright, I'm coming."

The moment the words had left his mouth, Celestia grinned wider than he had thought possible. She picked up the basket in her teeth and strode past Jonathan down the steep, woodland-covered hill he had climbed just minutes before. Jonathan watched her disappear over the horizon before being spun around and almost falling on his rear as Luna galloped past him.

"Come on—you'll love our favorite spot," she called out to him from a considerably large distance. Once his balance returned to him, the smallest smile found its way on to Jonathan's face. He wasted no time and quickly ran down the sloped land after the sisters.

After the quick meal, Jonathan lay on his back and with his eyes closed, enjoying the constant blanket of warmth the sun sent down through the shade. Leaves fell delicately from the looming trees and formed a blanket of red and yellow on the carpet of soft grass. Overhead, through the ever-thinning veil of branches and leaves, birds could be seen flying in v-formations toward the South. On the ground, some of the smaller woodland critters searched frantically for food to stockpile for the inevitable cold weather that would be brought in just a month's time.

Opening an eye, he turned his head and silently cast a glance over at Celestia. Following the unicorn's gaze, Jonathan saw Luna chasing after some particularly terrified looking squirrels. _Speaking of woodland critters... _The tiny creatures stood no chance against the young filly. With each passing second, the distance between Luna and her prey grew smaller and smaller until it seemed as if she could reach out and touch them with a hoof. Just when it seemed as if she would catch them, the squirrels latched onto a tree and climbed its height in a frenzy, disappearing in to the autumn leaves. _Looks like they won, _Jonathan thought, smirking to himself. _The little cheaters. _

After a moment of silence the squirrels emerged from the leaves, poking their cute little heads out. They stared down at Luna in complete silence for a few seconds before—much to Jonathan's amusement—blowing raspberries down at the fuming pegasus.

"Perhaps it'd fare best if you just left the _poor _squirrels alone, Lulu!" Celestia called out to her, stifling a giggle. "After all, surely you haven't already forgotten the last time you hassled them?"

Luna walked over to the group and sat down, huffing and rolling her eyes. "Yeah, yeah..."

"Now, since we're all here and actively paying attention; I have a few questions I would like to ask you, Jonathan—that is...if you don't mind, of course," Celestia said with a cordial tone.

Not particularly comfortable with the sudden shift of attention to himself, Jonathan coughed in embarrassment. "Well...I guess. I'll answer what I can," he said, fumbling over his words.

Celestia smiled kindly, "Alright. Now, my first question is a rather basic one though it's the one I am most curious about; where are you from, Jonathan?"

Scratching his head, Jonathan sit silent a moment before sighing. "Well, I grew up in a city—er, town, named St. Joseph. Though...everybody I knew there just called it St. Joe."

A giddy curiosity glimmered in Celestia's eyes upon hearing this bit of information. "What's St. Joseph like?"

"Hm..." Jonathan paused, unsure how to put his next statement, "It's a pretty big town—I mean, when compared to some of the other cities in the United States, it might not be, but it's still decently sized regardless."

"United States...your home, I assume?" Celestia asked.

Jonathan nodded, prompting her to ask another question. "Okay, so what kinds of species live there?"

Jonathan stared flatly at her, "...in the United States? It's impossible to name them all, even if I could really try."

"Well yes, I kind of expected that," Celestia said with a snort. "What I mean is—what kind of _sentient _species live in the United States?"

Jonathan pointed a finger to himself, "Only us humans."

"Sounds lonely," Luna interjected, slightly catching him off guard.

"I agree," Celestia said, frowning in thought. "Anyway, I have more questions to ask, but I'll save them for another time, as we really should get going." She stood up, looking toward the empty basket when another thought popped in to her head. "On second thought, I _do _have one more question before we leave, though I do admit it might be a rather weird one to you."

"...what is it?" Jonathan asked hesitantly.

"Are there any magic users in your land?"

Jonathan arched a brow and chuckled nervously, shifting uncomfortably in the grass, "Er...heh—no?"

"Oooh! Show him your magic then, Tia!" Luna bubbled, bouncing excitedly in place. Jonathan eyed the two curiously, but stayed silent. He later decided that it was the best course of action though, as what happened next would have stolen the words from him anyway.

First, an odd yellow energy enveloped both Celestia's horn and the two sisters' basket. Then, as if lifted by invisible strings, the basket was lifted weightlessly from the ground, and held in place in front of Jonathan. He caught it with trembling hands, almost dropping it in the process. _This can't possibly be real...can it?_

His mouth opened and closed repeatedly as he struggled to find the words to speak. Seeing Jonathan's aghast expression, Celestia couldn't help the proud smile that found its way on to her face, though Luna only found herself giggling.

"Seeing it used in person for the first time _is_ pretty spectacular," Luna admitted.

In a voice just barely above a whisper, Jonathan said, "I thought magic was fake..."

"What do you mean?" Celestia asked, tilting her head slightly in confusion.

"Well, back in my world magic was just fantasy; only used in books or old fairy tales. I mean, people _did _make 'magic shows', but those weren't real magic. Just the illusion of it," he replied with a frown.

"'World'?" the sisters chorused, their eyes widening in shock.

"Earth; my planet."

Both sisters gasped in unison and stared at Jonathan with a puzzled expression. _Now might be the time to run. _He quietly set the basket he had been holding onto the grass and took a step back, looking at the two with a solemn expression.

Quietly choking back a few tears, Jonathan, "If you no longer want to be my friends now that you know I am a...an alien, I understand."

He turned his back and was only able to take a step before—with a few flaps of her small, but powerful wings—Luna flew over his head and landed in front of him, effectively blocking his path. She looked hurt. "Why wouldn't I want to be your friend?"

"Jonathan, where you come from has no bearing on how we view you," Celestia added. Jonathan opened his mouth to respond, but didn't get the chance, as she continued. "Where you come from isn't who you are. Your personality is."

His shoulders slumping, Jonathan sighed. "Right..."

"Now, come on! Our day is nowhere near over yet," Celestia said with a smile.

_**ACTUALLY IMPORTANT NOTICE (FOR ONCE): Sorry for the long wait for this new chapter, but I might as well use this time to announce my leave from this site. As time has passed, I've come to decide that I really don't have much a desire to write any type of fanfiction except for **_**My Little Pony. _Since there's a whole site dedicated to such a thing, with much more reasonable rules to boot, I might as well move to there. (Related information can be found on my profile.)_**

_**If I ever have any desire to write non-MLP fanfiction, I'll return and post it here. **_

_**Until then, I love you all and thank you for reading my story while I was here,  
>~Zachary (Zezima Veliz) V.<strong>_


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